City of Detroit to receive $57.5 million in federal grants for disaster relief and recovery

Mayor Duggan and DWSD Director Gary Brown announce $57.5-million HUD grant March 22.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Martha Fudge announced this week that $57.5 million would be allocated in Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds to help the City of Detroit recover from disasters and build inclusive resilience to climate change.

The $57.5 million federal grant will assist the City in its ongoing efforts to recover from catastrophic weather and floods that occurred last summer. The funding award comes after Detroit was hit hard last June by massive rainstorms that prompted a disaster declaration from President Joe Biden.

Mayor Mike Duggan stated the City will be working closely with HUD officials to fully understand the guidelines and regulations attached to this funding, and will pursue permanent measures to protect residents in Jefferson Chalmers from rising water levels along the Detroit River.

The City also intends to pursue an expansion of the recently announced basement protection program, and has already committed $2.4 million for a pilot in the Jefferson Chalmers neighborhood and Aviation subdivision to install backflow prevention valves and sump pumps. With the new HUD funds, Mayor Duggan wants to expand this program quickly to all 11 areas of the city that have experienced repeated flooding.

Read the Mayor’s full statement on the City’s Website at: $57.5 Million Grant for flood recovery and prevention (detroitmi.gov)

Detroit Fire Department Commissioner Chuck Simms announced that the department received six new fire engines and ten new ambulances as part of the ongoing efforts to update and improve the DFD fleet.